Oct 17 (ST) My dear Basil maamey, I thought I must write to you this week because your name is being heard in relation to several issues that are being talked about in the country these days – and most people are looking to you to solve these issues because we have been told that you are the only person who is capable of doing so. You might wonder why people want you to settle these matters when you have three aiyas in the Cabinet and one of them is the big boss, but loku aiya was never more..

Oct 17 (Island) On Tuesday (5), as the sun rose above the horizon it may have felt like a usual day in Sri Lanka. But the morning broke a tragic news as it gloomed the nation and it left a deep void in the field of archeology. It was for none other than to the demise of Dr. Siran Upendra Deraniyagala.Anyone who has an interest in the history of SL doesn’t need an introduction to Deraniyagala and his service. I find him, that rather than investing his energy on archaeology he invested his soul. more..

Oct 17 (ST) Calling himself the respectful founder of the iconic hedge fund, Galleon Group, he shamed the SL-American community by what he did. Now, he tries to whitewash himself by saying he was framed by corrupt FBI agents who wiretapped him, New York’s prosecutors who accused him of greed but went on to work for private law firms after his case to feed their own greed, the US Justice Department and everyone who put him in jail. more..

Oct 17 (SO) Warnings by SL wrestling officials that decamping was to take place during the tour of Norway for the world meet had been disregarded by the authorities and now a man hunt is on to track down Donald Indrawansa who was the manager of the team contingent who fled the scene and deserted the athletes no sooner they landed in Oslo. Wrestling officials have also said that Indrawansa had in his possession money to the tune of more than Rs.250,000 which was part of more..

Oct 17 (SO) In and out slow bowler Akila Dananjaya will have the fight of his career when SL gets down to contest what is being called the T20 World Cup that starts in the UAE next week. Dananjaya is not the only player who has been selected despite not being in the best of form, but his selection at the last minute at a time he was struggling for wickets is what raises pertinent questions. In his last T20 match on home soil, Dananjaya conceded 28 runs without a wicket against South Africa in Aug more..

Oct 17 (ST) SL’s captain Dasun Shanaka, leading his side into his first ICC major tournament as a captain, pinned hopes on Pathum Nissanka, saying he is capable as a contributor, but should also seize the opportunity of the big stage in making the most and cementing his status. “Yeah, obviously, he has been a guy coming through the system. We actually know how capable he is, but still when you come to a bigger stage you’ve got to make more..

Oct 17 (ST) Following last week’s cancellation of the trials for this December’s 15th FINA World Swimming Championship, SL Aquatic Sports Union (SLASU) has now resorted to select the four swimmers to represent the nation in Abu Dhabi, based on 2019 performances. SLASU’s president, Nethru Nanayakkara said given that there was a deadlock to hold the trials as pools reopened only yesterday, the technical and the selector’s committee handling this process have decided more..

Oct 17 (ST) Just after the illustrious cricketing career which spanned for nearly two decades performing yeoman service as an all-rounder in all formats of the game to the country, TM Dilshan the architect of the Dilscoop cricket stroke that embossed his patent on the most talked about new stroke in cricket, but not given much publicity. Even Dilshan himself may not have known that he had such abundant crazy fans scattered island wide when fans thronged to the Pallekelle Int'l stadium as well as more..

Oct 17 (TM) Jeewan Thondaman, political leader representing the estate electorate in SL, was questioned recently on what development means for the estate sector. He said: “One politician visits the estates and says he built five houses and another one says he built 10. Merely building houses is not development.” Then the TV anchor probed him on what development really is. “Giving the opportunity for people to build their own house in a land they own, as per their preference & aspirations, more..

Oct 17 (ST) Sri Lanka tourism authorities need to market the destination prior to talking about numbers that only look good as statistics. The 13,547 recorded visitor arrivals last month were mostly Sri Lankan passport holders or Indians on quarantine that cannot be accounted as generating tourism revenue into the country. Sri Lanka’s main competitors are gradually waking up to welcoming travellers worldwide since they have a larger income and cannot keep it closed forever. more..

Oct 17 (TM) As global oil prices continue to soar, the Ministry of Energy awaits final word from the Cabinet of Ministers on the re-establishment of the Fuel Price Stabilisation Fund, which is expected to be given tomorrow during the cabinet meeting. When contacted, Ministry of Energy Secretary K.D.R. Olga said that despite the uncertainty in global fuel prices, Fuel Price Stabilisation Fund can still be more..

Oct 17 (TM) The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) on Monday was off to a red start with the All Share Price Index (ASPI) losing 29.63 points to close at 9,649.26. The turnover for the day was Rs. 2.57 billion while the share volume was 115.41 million. However, following news of its 53% price hike, Laugfs Gas PLC shares had a significant rally on this day. The non-voting share of Laugf Gas (LGL.X0) was the second-highest exchange gainer yesterday, increasing by over 21.4% (Rs. 3.6) more..

Oct 17 (SO) SL’s lone representative at the World Boxing Championships in Belgrade, Serbia, Army pugilist Sajeewa Nuwan Kumara is determined to fight for a medal. The 29-year-old lance corporal in the Armoured Corps is armed with a new-found self-belief after his bronze medal winning performance at the World Military Boxing Championship in Russia last month. Having emerged as SL’s best light fly weight (49kg) boxer since 2018, Sajeewa Nuwan is buoyed by his maiden success at int'l level more..

Oct 17 (ST) The debt-ridden Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) will fall into a liquidity trap due to its quest for foreign funds from local agents of international private lenders to settle its fuel bill and debt servicing for bank borrowings despite Treasury support to secure those funds locally, informed sources said, The Treasury had given a sovereign guarantee to the CPC to raise US$1.8 billion from the two state banks more..

Oct 17 (SO) Central Bank projects a strong economic growth rate following an early recovery of key sectors such as tourism and exports next year. The bank is optimistic that it will tide over debt repayments coming up in the nears a head comfortably and put the country on a growth path again. “The Govt and the Central Bank will use the strategies laid out in the six-month road map to help boost economic growth,” said CB Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal in his post Monetary Policy more..

Oct 17 (Island) Nihal S. Samarasinha has been appointed as Honorary Consul of Sri Lanka for three Federal States in Germany, which includes Hessen, Rheinland Palatinate and Saarland. He would be mainly promoting commecial diplomacy in the three states. He presented his credentials to State Minister Axel Wintermeyer along with 18 other Consuls General and Honorary Consuls at the official State Residence Villa of the Minister President of Hessen. more..

Oct 17 (ST) Minister Udaya Gammanpila has called on Minister Basil Rajapaksa to find a solution to the fuel price crisis and warned that uninterrupted fuel supplies could only be guaranteed for the next two months. Minister Gammanpila said that the Finance Minister had been informed of the situation where the CPC could face financial difficulties in importing fuel if a solution was not provided. “It has been conveyed that uninterrupted fuel supplies could only be guaranteed until January” more..

Oct 17 (ST) SL’s dollar crunch has hit another sector: There have been no bidders for the last two spot tenders called by the Lanka Coal Company (Pvt) Ltd (LCC) which buys the commodity for the Lakvijaya coal power plant in Norochcholai. The problem arose with suppliers asking for upfront payments to be made for the coal purchases instead of transacting through the usual method, which is letters of credit. The issue was compounded by a sharp rise in global coal prices, more..

Oct 17 (TM) Colombo Port City Economic Commission Chairman Gamini Marapana PC recently locked horns with President’s Secretary Dr. P.B. Jayasundara over attempts to undermine the Commission, and went on to explain the mandate of the Commission and its functions to Dr. Jayasundara. The exchange came following a letter sent by Dr. Jayasundara seeking a meeting once in three weeks with the Commission more..

Oct 17 (SO) Wearing face masks should be 100 percent in the country at present and even a fully vaccinated person can get infected with Covid-19 and spread the disease to others. There is a possibility for fully vaccinated people to die from Covid-19 if he/she does not seek medical treatment early, Health Promotion Bureau (HPB) Director Dr. Ranjith Batuwanthudawa said. He told a press briefing on Friday that the vaccine only increases the immunity against Covid-19. more..

Oct 17 (ST) Despite the stalemate in talks between trade unions of teachers and principals and Govt on the salary anomalies, some schools are preparing to reopen next week. Education Ministry said schools will reopen as planned in stages. Primary schools that have grade 1 to 5 classes, and have fewer than 200 students, will reopen first followed by schools that have fewer than 200 students. About 3,800 schools will reopen. There are about 5,000 schools that have fewer than 200 students. more..

Oct 17 (ST) The tunnel project of a Rs. 85 billion loan from the ADB to take water from Moragahakanda to the Mahakandarawa tank in the North Central Province has run into questions from the Public Finance Dept for bypassing protocols. The department has written to Irrigation Ministry, questioning why it is not keeping to recommendations of Technical Evaluation Committee (TEC) appointed to review more..

Oct 17 (Island) Lanka may be a small island compared to China, Russia, the US or India, yet if SL develops expertise, the country would be equal to all other countries when it comes to cyber-warfare, said Eminent scholar and Member of Indian Parliament, Dr Subramanian Swamy. Speaking at the Security Salon on National Security in the 21st Century conducted by the Institute of National Security Studies (INSS) at the Nandimithra Auditorium of the Ministry of Defence, more..

Oct 17 (TM) SL Customs is exploring the possibility of repurposing some of the confiscated stocks of refused tea by supplying it to state institutions that are producing organic fertiliser, instead of destroying the stock. The move was also seen as a way to release a number of containers the stocks are in back into circulation. A senior Customs official said they were in discussions with the Ministry of Agriculture and had identified five state institutions that were interested in using refused tea more..

Oct 17 (TM) Important data related to the alleged garlic scam have been deleted or destroyed from the computer database of state retailer Lanka Sathosa, investigators informed the Welisara Magistrate’s Court. This was revealed to the court by the CID, based on the statement of the Assistant Manager of the Technical Division at Lanka Sathosa. According to the said statement, data related to the garlic transaction was deleted or destroyed more..

Oct 18 (DM) Sri Lanka today, is probably facing one of the most critical phases in its post-independence period. On the one hand, the country is being battered by the Covid-19 virus and the initially popular govt led by Prez Rajapaksa is rapidly losing support countrywide. While the numbers of dead and infected persons have drastically dropped - with fatalities down to 23 on Tuesday - the medical fraternity has warned, another wave of the infection could hit the country if health disciplines more..

Oct 18 (TM) The question of the long-delayed, little-awaited provincial council (PC) elections, the terms of the elected representation of which have all lapsed and are presently under the administration of provincial governors, is something of a crucible. The PCs, established through the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, under the benevolent jackboot of the neighbourhood big brother – India, represent for India, an orphaned child; for Sri Lanka, a bastard child; for the Govt of Sri Lanka, more..

Oct 18 (DM) SL’s foreign policy has been inconsistent over the past few years under successive Govts and its dealings with certain countries, at times, has raised a number of questions. In his first media interview since taking office, Foreign Minister Professor G.L. Peiris spoke about the foreign policy SL hopes to follow in future and about the human rights issue. Q: Professor Peiris, since taking office very recently a number of diplomats have more..

Oct 18 (DM) Co-operatives are gaining ground in the North. The co-operative movement serving small producers grew into a rural giant during the middle of the 20th century in northern SL. Battered by the civil war, its limbs broken, but its brain and arteries surviving the bombardment, this sleeping giant is now awaking with a turn to food, agriculture and rural production amidst the most severe economic crisis in our postcolonial history. The entire country is facing shortages and price hikes of food. more..

Oct 18 (CT) Granted the British facilitated the formation of political parties, in the State Council days, allegedly as an extension of the infamous Divide and Rule policy, on the model of what prevailed in Britain at the time, the fact that it is entrenched in the politics of SL today has to be accepted. The formation of the first political party in Colonial Ceylon, the Trotskyite, Lanka Sama Samaja Party, its nomenclature reflective of the developments in post-revolutionary Russia, more..

Oct 18 (SO) Govt has an ambitious target of generating 70% of energy from renewable sources by 2030. The remaining 30% will be from other sources. However, after 2030, the plan is to work towards a 100%. Prof. Sirimal Abeyratne, Head of Dept of Economics at the Uni of Colombo, shed some light on the topic from an economic perspective and spoke about how SL can create positive outcomes, especially with regard to more..

Oct 18 (ST) If the Sirisena-Wickremesinghe coalition of 2015-2019 was tone deaf to outraged mutterings of the citizenry at the time, surely the Rajapaksa-Rajapaksa-Rajapaksa govt of 2020 onwards must be wholly dumb, deaf and blind to the roars of fury exploding in their favoured constituencies in SL. As farmers who once gave sweeping mandates to the Govt burn their fields along with effigies of the Agriculture Minister and education trade unionists angrily challenge the Public Security Minister, more..

Oct 18 (ST) Ever since President Chandrika Kumaratunga damned the present J.R. Jayewardene constitution in the late 90’s as a bahubhutha or the devil’s constitution, the notion has festered in the collective public conscious that the stumbling block preventing Lanka’s leap to prosperity from the pits of poverty is the 1978 supreme charter. Since then, every successive leader, whilst remorselessly enjoying the untrammeled powers of an exec presidency more..

Oct 18 (DM) The present framework restricts the sovereignty of the people merely to the day they go to the polling booth to change or retain the ruling party, [mostly according to their irrational selections] and thereafter leave sovereignty in the “safe” hands of the unscrupulous elected [servants], and take a backseat watching powerlessly whilst their servants turned masters breach their confidence and expectations with impunity! The sovereign citizens have no recourse to intervention, more..

Oct 18 (Island) A move to set up a zoo on a 72-acre land (in Piliyandala), which has been allocated for the construction of a veterinary hospital, and a factory to manufacture food for zoo animals, has incensed the Dehiwala zoological gardens workers. The protesters have blamed Minister Gamini Lokuge for the controversial zoo project, and warned of trade union action if he is allowed to have his way. They are reported to have made representations to PM Rajapaksa in this regard. more..

Oct 18 (FT) The besieged tea industry is to get a last-minute lifeline with the import of a critical source of nitrogen, albeit on an interim basis, amidst a chemical fertiliser ban that has threatened crop yield and export income. Minister Dr. Ramesh Pathirana confirmed that 100,000 tons of sulphate of ammonia (SOA) would be imported to support the $ 1.3 billion foreign exchange-earning tea sector, which has been reeling from more..

Oct 18 (FT) The results of the latest LMD-NielsenIQ Business Confidence Index (BCI) survey indicate that sentiment surrounding the economy improved in September as 20% of respondents anticipate an improvement in the next 12 months – up from a mere 6% in the previous month. However, the majority (46%) of those consulted by the pollsters believe that economic conditions will deteriorate in the coming 12 months and another 34% expect the economy to stay the same. more..